The present invention relates to inhalation apparatus and in particular to medical humidifiers.
Medical humidifiers are used with intensive care ventilators to heat and humidify dry medical gases to specified levels before said gases are inhaled by a patient.
An example of a known medical humidifier is described in UK patent No. 1301582 which includes a delivery module, a humidifying module and a heater module. The humidifying module consists essentially of a reservoir for water, the base of which is in thermal contact with a heater. The reservoir is enclosed by a cover which also accommodates a scroll covered by a wick material which dips into the water contained within the reservoir.
The humidifying module can be readily removed from the heater module for sterilisation, change of wick or other servicing requirement.
To allow for expansion of the wick, that is, an enlargement of its surface area when it has absorbed water, the wick is formed as a scroll or cylinder. This has the effect of giving the humidifying module a relatively high volume and as a consequence modules of different volume should be used for different types of patient, for example, infants and adults.